by Lacey Pfalz
Last updated: 8:45 AM ET, Thu April 9, 2026
Airlines in America have been merging for decades—more recently with the merger between Alaska Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines—but Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy told reporters he could accept more mergers from major American air carriers in the future.
According to Reuters, higher jet fuel prices caused by the U.S.-Israel war against Iran and the subsequent closure of the Strait of Hormuz is growing talk about more mergers within the U.S. airline industry, which Duffy commented upon on Tuesday, April 7 while being interviewed by CNBC.
"Who knows who is going to match up?... Is there room for some mergers in the aviation industry? Yeah, I think there is," Duffy told CNBC. “…If there was a merger between some of the larger airlines, they would have to peel off some of their assets. I am not going to pre-commit to anything."
Over the past few decades, a series of mergers led to the consolidation of airlines to the point where 80 percent of the domestic passenger market is now controlled by just four airlines: American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Southwest Airlines.
Yet in recent history, efforts by airlines to merge have been rejected by U.S. judges due to antitrust concerns, like JetBlue’s $3.8 billion merger with Spirit Airlines in 2024.
Under President Biden, the Department of Transportation along with the Department of Justice began investigating competition in air travel.
Now, however, the merger moves are on.
Spirit Airlines and Frontier made headlines in December after a report surfaced they were considering a merger. Spirit Airlines had to declare bankruptcy recently after it failed to turn a profit post-pandemic.
In early March, the Department of Justice gave Allegiant and Sun Country the approval to merge in a $1.5 billion deal. Clearing this major hurdle, it’s now awaiting approval from the Department of Transportation, which seems likely following Duffy’s recent comments.
In late March, rumors about JetBlue’s potential sale to United, Alaska or Southwest led the company to release an official statement denying the rumors it was looking for another airline to purchase them.
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